Originally Posted by
Shutter
Hi... ok, sooo I have two used Campagnolo Athena (I think) headsets that I had pulled out of two frames. I do everything myself except for headsets....
The mechanic said that there was pitting in both of them on the lower cups (he showed my the little dots where the bearings would sit and get stuck...
He recommended getting two new headsets as these are no good...
The only thing that bugs me is that I REALLY like the look of these headsets and now I'm afraid that if I buy a used one on ebay that it will have the same problem... NOS ones are too damn expensive...
Is there any solution to this pitting?? It feels like a waste to chuck out two beautiful campagnolo headsets....
If they are junk then I was thinking of buying some NOS campagnolo Record ones as they seem to be pretty common for $80 on ebay (unless someone knows where to get them cheaper because I would like to pick up 3-4 of them to have a couple extras in stock)
Thanks!
Originally Posted by
lowlife1975
use loose bearings which will space in between the indentations. no need for a new headset, sounds like a typical LBS response, unless the steering feels extremely "indexed." it should be totally fine though, i run a lot of headsets with fork crown race and bottom cup showing slight indentations.
The mechanic is 100% correct, what he says is not nonsense, the headset will never be as designed again. This does not however mean that you cannot improve on what you have, and bring it up to an acceptable level. The suggestion given by lowlife simply will not work in a Campagnolo headset as the spacing of the balls in Campagnolo cages in Campagnolo headsets are precisely what they would be with loose balls. So placing loose balls will give you the same situation as a Campagnolo caged set. If you want to improve on the set-up, remove one cup and replace it at 90° to where it used to be in the frame, then get a caged bearing of a less expensive headset where the bearings are spaced differently than with the Campagnolo headset.. This is generally the best improvement that you can get for your buck. It will however not be like new.